taint

¹

Or t'aint

noun

Slang: Vulgar.

1. the area between the testicles or vulva and the anus; the perineum.

taint

²

[teynt]

noun

1. a trace of something bad, offensive, or harmful.

   Synonyms: stain, blemish, spot, fault, flaw, defect

2. a trace of infection, contamination, or the like.

3. a trace of dishonor or discredit.

4. Obsolete.,  color; tint.

verb (used with object)

1. to modify by or as if by a trace of something offensive or deleterious.

2. to infect, contaminate, corrupt, or spoil.

   Synonyms: poison, pollute, defile

3. to sully or tarnish (a person's name, reputation, etc.).

   Synonyms: stain, dishonor

4. Obsolete.,  to color or tint.

verb (used without object)

1. to become tainted; spoil.

taint

/ teɪnt /

verb

1. to affect or be affected by pollution or contamination

   oil has tainted the water

2. to tarnish (someone's reputation, etc)

noun

1. a defect or flaw

   a taint on someone's reputation

2. a trace of contamination or infection

Other Word Forms

• untainting adjective
• taintless adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of taint¹

First recorded in 1955–60; casual pronunciation of it ain’t (the one or the other), i.e., it is the area in between

Origin of taint²

First recorded in 1325–75; conflation of Middle English taynt, shortened variant of attaint “struck, attainted,” past participle of attainten “to convict” ( attaint ), late Middle English taynt “hue, tint” ( tint ), from Anglo-French teint or directly from Latin tinctus, equivalent to ting(ere) “to dye, color“ ( tinge ) + -tus suffix of verb action); and teinte, from Late Latin tincta “inked stroke,” noun use of feminine of past participle of tingere

Word History and Origins

Origin of taint¹

C14: (influenced by attaint infected, from _attain ) from Old French teindre to dye, from Latin tingere to dye

Example Sentences

Back then people believed that one drop of Black blood tainted the “superior race,” but having White blood made you “better.”

Read more on Literature

The UK Foreign Office has added a further 11 countries to its list warning of the risks of methanol poisoning from tainted alcoholic drinks.

Read more on BBC

“This kid is real. He’s not jaded or tainted by anything yet. And to Netflix’s credit, they took a chance on him.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Even a tainted winner gets initial buzz and can change standards for competition.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

With the York brand now tainted beyond repair, who they choose to celebrate with may be a sign of who they will align with in future.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• besmirch 
• blight 
• cloud 
• corrupt 
• damage 
• discredit 
• harm 
• hurt 
• infect 
• muddy 
• poison 
• pollute 
• smear 
• spoil 
• stain 
• sully 
• tar 
• tarnish